Daily Grit by Wes Thorp

As a lifelong Republican, here's why I voted for Elissa Slotkin for Congress

Back in the middle 1960s, my cousin and I started one of the first Teenage Republican clubs in the country.  My family was Republican.  I was a leader at Delta College of the college Republicans and my conservatism got real traction when Barry Goldwater ran for president in 1964.

 My mentor during that time was a thinking conservative member of the Michigan Legislature.  My political leanings went through a period of dormancy when I became a member of the news media.

Fast forward to the election that just happened.  My allegiances have changed.  I wanted to vote for the defeated incumbent Mike Bishop, but couldn't in good conscience.  He seemed to care more for the rich and the famous than for the common people and for those in need.  Bishop appeared to avoid voters in my area which is centered on Michigan's capital city.  He had no accessibility.

Being retired and depending on my pension and social security, he seemed to give lip service to the worries and concerns of senior citizens.  I found a sentence or two on campaign mailings where he stated his desires in a very general way.  But there was not much more.  I also depend on Medicare which I've paid into all my working life.  Republicans have touted how they wanted to reduce these benefits.  Bishop seemed to be silent.

Then I saw Slotkin's television commercials.  She seemed to be a real person with a real family and an understanding of how government works.  I was impressed enough to vote for her.

Did I get any of those around me to vote for her?  You bet.  

She won.  Will she be a communicator with the people she represents?  I hope so.

 

Getting a "fine needle biopsy" of my thyroid on a Wednesday afternoon

My wife Gladys got this shot while I was waiting for the MSU doctor to do the fine needle biopsy of my thyroid.

Before poking me more than 10 times in my thyroid which has a goiter the size of an orange, the Michigan State University doctor took some time to talk about thyroid cancer and how the odds were that I didn't have it.  However, he did say that if I tested positive, then it would be pretty treatable.

It was all part of my fine needle biopsy that was taken after tests showed a soft tissue mass on the back of my tongue.  It was found in the process of various tests that the goiter on my thyroid was the size of an orange and that my thyroid had dropped down into my chest from my neck.

I found that the biopsy was pretty easy, compared to the biopsy of my tongue more than two weeks ago where a sample was taken in the operating room with me under a general anesthetic.  The doctor used a variety of syringes to take samples directly from my thyroid.  The cells have been shipped to a pathologist in New York.  Results should be back by a week from this past Wednesday.

Any after effects from the biopsy?  My neck and throat are sore.  No pain, but some soreness.

For me, the threat of cancer has had a cleansing effect.  I quickly clarified my values and what I want to do with the rest of my life.  The list is short, but would center around my relationship with God, with my wife and with the rest of my family.   I could come up with a "bucket list" real quick.  

I pray a whole lot more.  I'm not sure if God had to put on extra staff to hear my prayers.  I'm praying for a wider group of people, including those who we deliver Meals on Wheels today.

I'm writing this for myself.  Doing that helps me to sort out my reaction to a whole bunch of health stuff that happened this past year.  I don't think I'll stop.  I don't think I can.